Hoosiers will once again have the opportunity this fall to grab a look at a plethora of independent films large and small before they’re released.
With the theme of “Connect to What Matters,” plucked from the early days of the World Wide Web, the 34th Heartland International Film Festival will invite viewers to celebrate stories from Indiana, the U.S. and the world from Oct. 9-19.
Starring on screens across those 11 days are Indianapolis-born Brendan Fraser; Rami Malek, a University of Evansville alum; Julia Roberts; Andrew Garfield; and Margaret Qualley. In all, the festival plans to show more than 100 independent films, including 19 world and U.S. premieres, 27 regional premieres and 17 special presentations.
Heartland will announce the winning filmmakers, who will collect awards from more than $60,000 in cash prizes, on Oct. 18.
Find highlights for 2025 below. And visit heartlandfilm.org/festival for the full lineup and to buy tickets.
Big titles to watch for
“Rental Family”: Fraser stars as an American actor in Tokyo who ends up working for a Japanese rental family agency. (Opening night, Oct. 9 at Newfields. $20)
ADVERTISEMENT“Train Dreams”: Based on the Denis Johnson novella about a logger and railroad worker, played by Joel Edgerton, who is navigating the changing landscape of early 20th-century America. (Centerpiece screening, Oct. 15 at Newfields. $15)
“Nuremberg”: Malek plays a World War II psychiatrist who becomes fixated on understanding the evil of Nazi leaders during the Nuremberg trials. (Closing night, Oct. 19 at Newfields. $20)
Other big names include “After the Hunt” (Roberts and Garfield), “Blue Moon” (Ethan Hawke and Qualley), “A Private Life” (Jodie Foster) and “It Was Just an Accident” (Cannes Palme d’Or winner by Jafar Panahi). Find the full schedule at heartlandfilm.org/festival.
More films worth checking out
Feature films:
“Is This Thing On?”: Former Colts quarterback Peyton Manning has a cameo in this Bradley Cooper feature about a couple dealing with mid-life curveballs.
“Christy”: Sydney Sweeney plays Christy Martin, who starts out in rural West Virginia and climbs the ranks of the boxing world in this film that also stars Indianapolis’ Katy O’Brian. Martin herself will attend a post-screening Q&A.
“Weekend at the End of the World”: Two friends who have struggled with relationships and careers try to improve their lives before the world ends.
“The House with No Address”: A young prosecutor works in a society where anyone convicted of a major crime is erased, but he must confront his views once his mother is found guilty.
“Motherland”: A rules enforcer in a society that relieves parents of the responsibility of raising children learns the truth and rebels.
“Transplant”: A surgical resident pushes himself to a breaking point while working for a perfection-obsessed heart-transplant surgeon.
Documentaries:
“Sweet Lorraine in Auschwitz”: Former Indianapolis resident Frank Grunwald tells his story of how music gave him hope as he survived the Holocaust.
“The Tenderness Tour”: Indianapolis-based Richard Propes struggles to keep doing his advocacy work to repay people’s medical debt and end childhood violence as he himself endures illnesses.
“À demain sur la Lune”: A horse named Peyo visits patients who are near death in a palliative care unit in a northern France hospital.
“The Dating Game”: Three bachelors attend a weeklong dating camp run by a high-profile dating coach in China to find love.
“The Eyes of Ghana”: A 93-year-old documentarian, who filmed former Ghanan leader Kwame Nkrumah, is trying to repatriate more than 1,300 films that depict Africa’s independence movement in the 1950s and 1960s.
“Lost Wolves of Yellowstone”: The documentary chronicles the story of Mollie’s Pack, the first wolves to repatriate Yellowstone National Park.
Frank Grunwald’s story: A Holocaust letter defied victimhood with love. His mother’s last note now lives on in song.
Where to watch
In-person screenings will be available for all the films, and many will be accessible virtually for those watching in the U.S. For showtimes, visit: heartlandfilm.org/festival. The locations include:
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema: 3898 Lafayette Road
Indy Art Center: 820 E. 67th St.
Kan-Kan Cinema: 1258 Windsor St.
Living Room Theaters: 745 E. Ninth St., Suite 810
Newfields: 4000 N. Michigan Road
How to buy tickets
Buy tickets at heartlandfilmfestival.org or at the theater.
Single tickets are $13 for theater screenings, $15 for virtual screenings, and $10 to $20 for premium events. A 10-pack of tickets is $120, a streaming 10-pack is $140, a VIP fest pass is $220, and a duo fest pass, which serves two people, is $430. Fest passes include all physical and virtual screenings except premium events. Heartland Film members receive 20% off.
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Contact IndyStar reporter Domenica Bongiovanni at 317-444-7339 or [email protected]. Sign up here for the newsletter she curates about things to do and ways to explore Indianapolis. Find her on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter: @domenicareports.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Brendan Fraser, Rami Malek star in Heartland Film Festival 2025 lineup
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